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The current level of insurgent activity in Iraq has stimulated a great deal of discussion and consideration of how we can best fight and defeat an urban insurgency marked by hit and run ambushes, sniping, the use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and an enemy's disregard for collateral casualties and damage to the host nation and her people. We closely observe our adversary, learning his tactics, techniques, and procedures, and we employ our own ambushes and innovative methods to seize every opportunity to destroy him before he is ready to strike.
America is a nation at war, and as we train, deploy, and fight we are engaged in collecting vital information from warriors in the global war on terror. We glean information from units preparing to deploy, from those engaged in combat, and from those recently returned. At the Infantry School we have daily discourse in our classrooms with those who have fought and defeated the urban insurgent in close combat. Over 70 percent of our captains in the career course and 80 percent of our NCOs in the NCO Academy bring firsthand combat experience from either Iraq or Afghanistan, and in some cases both. We are busy considering their ideas and the lessons they have learned and are eager to share with their contemporaries. Concurrent with these internal efforts, the Infantry Traveling Team has been conducting post combat surveys with returning units and following up with field visits to develop recurring trends distilled from their feedback. We have ramped up our exchange with other countries currently fighting their own insurgencies to capture other perspectives on protracted struggles against resilient and determined enemies. Not surprisingly, there are some recurring trends echoing from each of these sources.
One such trend is our struggle for certainty in an uncertain, complex, and dynamic environment while fighting multiple asymmetric threats. Despite the urban insurgents' inherent advantages of mobility, local knowledge, and their own propaganda efforts, we continue our efforts to stabilize the country and region, capitalizing on our own strengths and exploiting weaknesses to enable host nation forces and agencies to establish and sustain viable democratic...